Sweets Shop
by Jenalyn
Summary: Story rewrite, feedback needed!
1. Introduction

**Sweets Shop**

**Introduction time!**

This is my first fan fiction. So yeah, it will probably suck, and I apologize for that. Now that that's out of the way, here are the pairings:

Tsukasa + Tsukushi

Rui + Shizuka

Soujiro + Yuki

Akira + Sakurako

Kinsan + Shigeru

** Shizuka will most likely not be in the story, I just wanted to make it clear that they were still together. Just consider her off in France somewhere.**

I hope everyone enjoys this, and I look forward to hearing any comments. :3

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_Standard Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters...blah blah blah...all rights are reserved and belong to Yoko Kamio...blah blah blah...yeah ok, that's all_.

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Tsukushi arrived at work a little early. It had been nice and sunny that day, so naturally many people were out. Tsukushi figured that the Dango shop could use a little extra help if it was as busy as she thought it might be. Seeing her boss, she smiled. "Good afternoon, Liz. How has it been today?" 

"How has it been today? Look around," Liz said, as she glanced around the shop once again, amazed at the lack of customers, "it's been like this for the last four hours. We won't be able to stay open much longer if things continue this way."

"I guess you don't want me to start early then?"

"Not really. I was actually going to ask you and Yuki to take the day off. This store is really not doing the business to be able to support so many employees."

This made Tsukushi nervous. Her job at the Dango shop was her main source of income, and she really didn't feel her waitress job could support her even if only for a little while. "That's ok Liz, I understand," she said, feeling defeated. "So, I'll see you tomorrow?"

"Sure thing, Tsukushi. Thanks for understanding."

With that she left the shop for home. Tsukushi had yet another incident with the F4 earlier that day, and if you take into consideration what just happened, she had the distinct feeling that this was not going to be a good day.

_Ugh, it's all that idiot Tsukasa's fault. My day is always better when I don't see him in the morning. I still can't believe he had the nerve to say that I bumped into him when I was the one sitting down!_

It wasn't long before she reached her home. Tsukushi lived by herself because her parents and brother were away in a fishing village. She really didn't mind living by herself though, it allowed her many more freedoms than she would have had if they were still there, but she did miss them all terribly. Except, of course, when her mother would pester her to find a rich husband. That, Tsukushi could whole heartedly live without.

Tsukushi, standing outside of her apartment looking for her keys, could already hear the beep of the answering machine. _Great, _she thought, _who could that be from? _She briefly hoped that it would be from Liz at the Dango shop asking her to come back because it suddenly got busy.

As soon as she pressed the button a wave of worry passed over her.

"Hey Tsukushi, this is Caleb from the restaurant. I have some bad news for you. As you know, business has not been that great, and hey, I really wanted to tell you this is person, but it looks like that is no longer possible. We're going to have to let you go. It's nothing personal, really, you were one of our best waitresses. I wish you luck in finding another job, oh, and don't forget to return your uniform."

_What?…He…But I…...Crap. Now what am I going to do?_

Tsukushi had not felt this miserable in a while, so she decided to rest in bed for a while. After all, she had nothing better to do. Hundreds of worrisome thoughts swam through her head. How was she going to support herself when her only remaining job seemed to be ending also? Tsukushi wasn't just supporting herself either, what would her family do without the money she sent them each month? The fishing business had proved to be very difficult for her parents, and they had come to depend on her to supplement their income. Before she knew it her alarm was going off, signaling that it was time to get ready for school.

At least her walk to the school was peaceful. Maybe yesterday was all just a bad dream? She could hope.

The school gossip cliques seemed ablaze with the latest information about the F4.

"Where are they?"

"They're not here. I bet they went on vacation somewhere, maybe someplace exotic. Oh, I wish they would have taken me along!"

"Maybe they are just late?"

"If they were going to be here today, they would have shown up by now."

_Grief, Tsukushi though, these people should get a life. I wonder if their parents know that, instead of paying for their children's education, they are really paying for their social lives._

Gladly, Tsukushi found that the day passed by relatively fast, and she found herself outside of the Dango shop once again. Briefly, she peered inside the window, looking to see how Liz was. Judging by her small smile, Tsukushi hoped for the best and entered the shop. "Hello Liz, are things going better today?"

"A little. I suppose that's only Murphy's Law after yesterday though."

"What do you mean Liz?"

"Well, word came down from management that we were going to be closing at the end of this month. Actually, we are going up for sale, but the managers don't think anyone would be interested in buying a Dango shop with the bad sales record that we have, so they are preparing us to close."

Tsukushi's mind shut off somewhere after Liz said they would be closing at the end of the month, and one thought haunted her.

What was she going to do?


	2. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own HYD or any of the characters. Blah blah blah, rub it in, why don't you.

Thanks to all my reviewers for the comments. I had posted this chapter a while ago but I had convinced myself that it was horrible. But because of all the reviews I decided to go back and edit it into something that works.

Italics are thoughts, with the exception of italics in quotes, those are just emphasised words.

So yeah, I apologize if this completely sucks.

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After all the events of the day, how she was fired from one job and learned that the Dango shop would be closing in a months time, Tsukushi gave in to her body and went to sleep. Sleeping turned out to be the best thing for her actually, for while dreaming she never had to worry about money or finding jobs. Those would be best left to her waking life, or at least that is what her alarm told her as it woke her in time for school the next day.

Tsukushi, who had awoken early enough, had taken a longer and more scenic route to school. Most mornings she was not as lucky and would barely have time fix breakfast before needing to run off to school, but Tsukushi took this as a good sign.

_Maybe today will be better._

This was easily Tsukushi's favorite way to get to school, mostly because it passed straight through a beautiful park.

_Mmm...the morning air feels so fresh today. Maybe that means I'll get a fresh start?_

Tuskushi let herself get caught up in her wandering thoughts, not noticing the familiar song of a violin that was growing louder. In truth, Rui knew that Tsukushi would be here this morning. Or at least he was hoping she would be. It was obvious to everyone that something was wrong, especially after yesterday.

Tsukasa had, begrudgingly of course, told the rest of the F4 what had happened between Tsukushi and him yesterday during lunch. Akira had almost given up on Tsukasa ever getting a girlfriend, especially one as violent as Tsukushi.

"What! I couldn't help it, SHE bumped into ME, the great Domyouji Tsukasa!"

Akira glared. "Tsukasa, she was sitting down, and you were moving. It was your fault."

"Yeah well..."

"You know what I bet it was? I think he just wanted to be around her. Tsukushi has been very absent lately. Tsukasa missed his girlfriend. You do look a little tense, man." teased Soujiro.

Tsukasa was silent, except for a bright red flush that appeared on his face.

Rui had waited at the emergency exit for her after lunch. He had to admit, it was very easy to worry about a girl like her. Even though he was with Shizuka, Rui always felt the need to protect Tsukushi. She was like a little sister to him and he didn't want to see her in trouble or hurt. So he waited. And waited. And waited some more, but she never showed.

He had decided to go to the dango shop she worked at and ask her how she was, but when Rui got there the lady behind the counter said that she ad sent Tsukushi home early because business was slowing down. Rui then thought she would be at the diner, so he continued there. This time he asked the manager where she was, and was surprised to find out that she had been laid off earlier that day. Wherever she was, he was sure that Tsukushi was not doing well.

That brought him to this morning. Rui knew better than to try and interrupt her thoughts yesterday, he knew she would need to think things through on her own. Tsukushi would come to him when she was ready, as she always had before.

The familiar song he was playing disturbed her daydream, and she realized that Rui was standing a few feet in front of her. Tsukushi was glad that, out of the F4, Rui was the one who had been standing in front of her. She had always felt a special connection to him, and now she really needed someone to talk to. But did she want to talk? Hopefully Rui didn't know anything, or catch on to how she was acting. Tsukushi wanted to avoid all uncomfortable questions.

"Good morning Hanazawa Rui. I didn't know you knew this route."

"Yeah, sometimes I like to take a walk before school."

"You must have gotten up very early to be here at this hour."

"I had a pretty good reason."

"Ah."

_And so the awkward walk to school begins._

"How come you ran off after school yesterday? We were all waiting for you. Tsukasa told us what happened."

"Ugh. What an idiot, huh? I blame him for how bad my day was."

"You know he's just a jerk to you because he likes you, right? That's just how he operates."

Tsukushi blushes. Suddenly, Rui stops and looks into her eyes.

"Why weren't you at work yesterday?"

_Damn, He knows._

"Yesterday? Oh, I thought the Dango shop would have been busy, so I got there early. It turned out that the place was pretty empty, so my manager sent me home."

"What about your job at the diner?"

_Geez, Hanazawa Rui sure does a good investigation, doesn't he?_

"Oh, that job. Well, I...Uh..."

"I spoke to your manager, he told me that he laid you off."

_Wonderful._

"You...didn't tell anyone, did you? This doesn't need to get out. I'm ok."

"No you're not. Don't lie."

"Everything is going to work out somehow," Tsukushi said in a tone barely above a whisper, "Right?"

They walked in silence for a bit, each not knowing what to say. Rui wished Shizuka was there, she had always been better with these kind of problems.

"...And I still have my job at the Dango shop for another month, so I'm not totally out of luck."

Tsukushi realized she had volunteered too much information accidentally. She shouldn't have brought that up.

"What do you mean, you still have it for another month?"

"Oh. It's nothing, forget I even said that. Hey, if we don't pick up our pace we are going to be late for school."

"Don't change the subject. The lady behind the counter at the Dango shop mentioned bad sales. Is the business going under?"

_Well, It's too late to go back now._

"Yeah. She thinks it would be best to close the shop before she looses too much money."

"So what are you going to do?"

Just then, as if her prayers were answered, Kazuya appeared on the street next to them in his limo.

"Hey Tsukushi, want a ride to school?"

"Yes! That would be wonderful Kazuya. See you later Hanazawa Rui!"

_Whew, saved at the last moment._

The rest of Tsukushi's day went well. She managed to make it through the day without seeing the F4, and as her last class ended she left for her job at the Dango shop.

Rui, however, was preoccupied trying to figure out ways to help Tsukushi. Actually, he could think of plenty of things that would help, but she wouldn't accept any of them if he didn't plan them right. His train of thought was broken by a wad of paper hitting his head. Looking up, Rui saw Tsukasa looking at him intently and with his hand in a throwing position.

"What's up with you? It's like you're even more out of it than usual."

"I've just got a lot on my mind right now, nothing big."

"Well, I'm bored. Tell me, maybe I can help."

Soujiro and Akira shared a smirk, after all, how much help could Tsukasa be?

"Come on. Tell me. Do we get to beat people up?"

Akira glared at Tsukasa again. "Yeah Rui, someone here might be able to help. I don't know if it will be me though, I have a date in a few hours."

"Thanks, but no thanks Akira. I'm sure she would much rather not have this get out."

"_She?_"

Akira asked who "she" was, but Rui was not listening. As soon as Rui had said "she" Tsukasa started giving him the most evil glare. Tsukasa knew who he was talking about. Both boys forgot Akira and Soujiro were even in the room.

"What the problem, Rui?"

"I don't know if I should say."

"Tell me."

Tsukasa was getting very agitated. Why did Tsukushi always go to Rui when she needed help? She could always go to him, he was there for her. Didn't she know that? And out of everyone, it had to be Rui. Sensing the tension rise in the room, Akira and Soujiro left. After all, they both had dates, followed by dates after that, and then more dates. They would have a busy night tonight.

"She lost one of her jobs, and the other place she works at will be out of business by the end of the month."

"Is that it?"

"Excuse me?"

"That's nothing. I can fix that in a second."

"Tsukasa, perhaps she doesn't want you to 'fix it'. You know her better than that. That's not her style."

"So what should I do? I want to help."

And with that, the boys put their heads together to figure out a plan to help Tsukushi.


	3. Feedback needed!

Hey everyone, sorry it's taken me so long to update. T.T

Anyways, I'm thinking about changing a few plot related things and I would like your opinion.

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**Question 1:**

From the start I had planned for Rui to play a strict friend role, with no romantic interest in Tsukushi. I now think that this was a bad idea, and that there should be some romantic interest shown. What do you think?

**Question 2:**

Is there any part of the story that you would like to see changed? What part and how so?

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…I thought that I had more questions, but that's all I can think of right now. All opinions are appreciated.

Also, after I get some feedback I will be posting a revised version of the first and second chapters and removing some of the OOC stuff that I noticed from chapter 2.


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